Long story short I was driving to work at about 6:30am on Thursday morning it was pretty foggy and I was the only one on the road. At my work we have this U shaped street that we have to go through to get to my parking area and around it there are a few trees and what not.

Anyways I’m towards the middle of the U going about to pull into the parking lot I use and all the sudden I heard this loud noise and feel my car shake a little. Something hit the side of my car. I pull over to find out what happened. I see a bunch mud on my car and like 4 random little dents. I look around and I see a deer. I think the deer tried crossing the road when I was passing and since it was foggy I guess he couldn't see. The damage sounded a lot worse than it actually is.

So now I have these little dents on my driver’s side rear door. I assumed it would only be 300-400 to fix. I went to 3 different shops and I got quotes from $1200.00 to $1600.00.

They said the skin needs to be replaced. I just wanted everyone’s opinion on the matter. I think if I really want it fixed I may just go through my insurance company since I'm getting ready to switch companies anyways, but I think it's a little crazy to be that much for my dents.







Yes I know they're barely noticeable, but it bothers me lol

Anyone know any shops in orlando that could remove the dents instead of replacing the skin or any other recommendations?

Thanks

**the little dents are above the door handle and the in the middle of the door I couldn't get a good shot of that one

 

Have you gone to a paintless dent removal place to see if they can fix it? PDR is not only less expensive than conventional bodywork, you also don't need to worry about them matching the paint color, which should be a concern for you since glacier frost mica is one of the hardest colors to properly match.

Be aware that we are currently nearing the peak of the deer rut (mating season). The deer have one thing on their minds, and it isn't watching where they are going.

 

I'm actually looking for a place in orlando that does the paintless dent removals. Most likely going to take it on monday if I find one and paint matching is actually my biggest concern. I went to two independent body shops and one that lexus of orlando recommended.

I'm hoping to find a decent solution since the paint isn't messed up. Thanks for the suggestion

 

Ack, sorry to see that but I'm glad that both you and deer are ok. I'm with Bichon, you should try paintless dent removal first, paint-matching can be a pita...

 

Its amazing what those paintless dent removal people can do. I had a 12 in long crease in my upper door from a clueless New Yorker who wanted to create a lane to the Holland Tunnel (within the roped off area) that didn't exist. It took awhile but the guy removed the dent and only charged me as if it were tiny. It was fixed at the dealer.

 

FYI I turned down purchasing a used IS because the paint on the side of the bumper and the fender didn't match the rest of the car....

Even though the dealer told me "Oh it's because you are looking at it from the wrong angle", I couldn't find a way for it to match. I even went back when the sun was starting to set and it was even MORE obvious it was hit. (He said it was never in an accident).

 

See I completely agree with you. It took me forever to find a GFM IS with black interior and low miles. I've had the car for a month and then I get these dents

I'm really leaning towards the paintless dent removal if I can find someone in the area. My last last last option would be to replace the door skin which is what ever body shop wants to do.

 

paintless dent removal shouldn't cost you more than a few hundred at most.

 

That's what I'm hoping for. I scheduled an estimate with a guy that works at the local lexus and infiniti dealers. Hopefully the outcome will be good. I'll keep anyone that's interested updated.

 

Please do; perhaps you could update this thread with the direction you decide to take, and whether you are happy with the results.

 

I certainly will! CL has been so helpful It'll be great if my little problem could help someone else in the future.